Citation

Steege MW, Wacker DP, Cigrand KC, Berg WK, Novak CG, Reimers TM, Sasso GM, DeRaad A. J. Appl. Behav. Anal. 1990; 23(4): 459-467.

Affiliation

University of Iowa.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1990, Wiley-Blackwell)

DOI

10.1901/jaba.1990.23-459

PMID

2150070

PMCID

PMC1286261

Abstract

Behavioral assessment procedures were used to determine the maintaining conditions of self-injury exhibited by 2 children with severe multiple handicaps. For both children, negative reinforcement (escape from grooming activities) was determined to be the maintaining reinforcer for self-injury (hand/arm biting) within an alternating treatments design. The treatment packages involved the use of negative reinforcement (brief escape from grooming activities) contingent upon a behavior that was incompatible with self-injury (reaching and pressing a microswitch that activated a pre-recorded message of "stop"). Treatment was evaluated with a reversal design for 1 child and with a multiple baseline across grooming activities for the 2nd child. The treatment led to a marked decrease in self-injury for both children. At follow-up, high rates of self-injury were reported for the 1st child, but low rates of self-injury and an increase in task-related appropriate behavior were observed for the 2nd child.

Language: en